I'm NC for almost 2 years now. My hair curled better and better, I even got more root curl.

But... Last week I went for a haircut from BSL to 2inch above. Long layers so it curls easier also on the back of my head. The day after the haircut I styled my hair and it curled perfectly.
Anyway, at the end of the day my hair looked weight down, as it did for a couple of days. So I thought I needed to clarify and I did. After SOTC it looked weight down again and felt supersmooth, so I clarified with another shampoo. But again after SOTC my hair felt extremely soft and lost a lot of texture. I don't understand..with a lot of extra weight off it should at least curl just as much as before the cut, especially at the roots, shouldn't it?

I don't know what to do with my hair, what does it need?
I don't use a lot of protein high on any list because in the past my hair got very very dry from it and IAgirl's PT made my hair soft and straight..
Can too much gel make your hair soft and weight down?

Edit: and I did a stretch test, moisture balance is perfect. Not too little and not too much.

Overuse of gel can definitely weigh hair down, but unless you are using way more than you did pre-haircut, I'm thinking that this isn't your problem.

I'm seeing two possibilities here for what is going on. First, you might need to try a light protein treatment. I see that the gelatin one didn't work for you, but that's quite a strong treatment. Maybe try a conditioner with just a moderate amount of protein in it, such as Aubrey GPB or Cure Care.

The other possibility is that your hair is just freaking out over the cut. This is quite normal, and it should look much better in a week or so. I had a lot of layers added to my hair about a month ago, and my hair completely freaked and looked horrible for about a week, but now I love it!

Hopefully others will chime in with more suggestions. Good luck! :)

Lynaea

04-30-2013 05:28 PM

I'm not sure if you mean you got two inches cut off or that you went from BSL to 2 inches above your shoulders??
If you got a lot cut off you probably need to adjust the amount of product you're using, conditioner and styling products. It's also possible that your new growth has slightly different properties and needs different care than you're used to. Also wavy hair often needs to be a certain length to form a full 'S'. I'm just kind of throwing stuff out there. :happy7:
My other thought is that maybe its due to something the salon put in your hair, a shampoo or serum with cones or a heat protectant spray? If they put anything in your hair you don't know for sure is CG its probably worth it to clarify with a cone free sulfate shampoo give it good dose of your regular conditioner and see how it reacts.

rapunzel4ever

05-01-2013 02:14 AM

@Hootenanny & Lynne: thanks for your input!

@Lynaea: I went frombra strap length to 1 inches above bra strap length ;-) sorry for the confusion.
Ald they indeed put something in my hair. He blown my hair dry so he could cut the split ends off, so my hair was completely straight. I said I liked it that way for the day (because it never had been this straight at this length) and he put a serum in that was full of cones!

Could my hair still feel this slick and smooth after the shampoo because of that?

_____
2b-c/3a med/fine- low porosity- normal elasticity, BSL

bosanbo

05-01-2013 03:50 PM

The serum and blow-drying could have something to do with it. Clarifying couldn't hurt. But... my hair curls *less* when it is short. It is chin length right now and I can get very loose ringlets, but when it is long I can get tighter ones. There's more hair to wind around, so wind it does. It seems counter-intuitive when you think of it as weight, but it makes sense (to me at least) when I think of actual material to curl. It may curl more once the cut settles in.

Since you're happy with how your hair looks early in the day, it sounds like it isn't just the cut. Either something is dragging it down (leftover serum, too much product) or you need more hold because you're getting less of a tight curl to begin with. Hope you find the solution!

rapunzel4ever

05-01-2013 06:39 PM

Thanks for helping me out, Bosanbo. I was thinking about the effect this length could have on my hair. But the shortest part of my hair isn't shorter then on my last haircut, it is only more hair that is cut shorter now.

I think it is more like something is coating my hair and prevent it from absorbing moisture and/or product. The hairs on top of my head felt and sounded squeaking clean.. So I put my hair to the test and this evening I misted my hair with my water/lavender oil mixture only on the straighter parts near the roots and immediately they started to curl!
So, although I can't explain how it is possible to overprotein my hair and still have my hair looking healthy shining, but straight, this is my theory:
I've clarified my hair with SLES poo, not much later used Kesham (this works like PT for me) to cleans my hair and add protein. But the more I did, the straighter my hair got especially on top of my head. Like nothing of my styling products got through.. so I figured, if protein fills the gaps of your hair, once you do with low porous hair, your hair will shine and bounce back. Except, when you overdo it. Your hair might get weight down and doesn't allow any moisture or product in to let it do its job. I think that is the case with my hair. I don't need more protein, but more moisture. The protein works like a barrier on my low porosity hair and weighs it down somehow. Does this make sense?